


Bountiful

by hiddencait



Series: Assorted Tumblr Prompt Ficlets [6]
Category: Northmen: A Viking Saga (2014)
Genre: F/M, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-14
Updated: 2017-03-14
Packaged: 2018-10-05 02:11:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 924
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10295186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hiddencait/pseuds/hiddencait
Summary: "Ooooh! Can I have some Asbjorn/Inghean with her cool earthy powers? I'd love a first kiss or two.... BETWEEN US, WE WILL WRITE ALL THE FICS."





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [seren_ccd](https://archiveofourown.org/users/seren_ccd/gifts).



She had her fingers buried in the dirt, but he could tell no visions are haunting her. No, this was mere gardening, though the sheer joy upon her face at the simple task made it no “mere” anything.

 

Asborjn’d worried when they settled in the small village that there would be little to recommend it to a princess, even one such as she. But to his surprise and no little delight, Inghean threw herself into village life, drinking it in like sweet well water to wash away the taste of cheap wine served at a painfully formal banquet one never wishes to attend but can’t find a reason to avoid.

 

His princess was never a sheltered flower, he thought, more a wild creature, near domesticated perhaps, but still uncomfortable with cages. Certainly her father found her less the pampered pet he expected, one easy to drown when its owner grew tired of it.

 

No, despite the doubts lingering on the faces of the villagers at the sight of her un-calloused hands, Inghean thrived here, fit here, almost better than Asbjorn himself. It’s as if she was blooming herself now once free of high stone walls and the cloistered towers her father insisted on keeping her in.

 

And too, while the cottage the four of them share, stumbling over each other like puppies in a basket but unwilling to abandon each other to live alone in a house they’d have to build anyway, was undisputedly her domain, it was the garden behind it that welcomed her to its kingdom like the princess she is.

 

He supposed it should not have surprised him, how the feral bit of land flourished and tamed beneath her hands, all but turning its only soil inside out to give her the herbs and vegetables and flowers she wished for.

 

Asbjorn wasn’t even sure she’s actually planted all the things that grow for her; it’s as if some appeared overnight, answering a whim or an offhand remark about how she’s missed this treat or that.

 

And indeed, he _knew_ the fruit trees were not there with they moved in, but now apples and plums grew side by side, their branches stretched wide to shelter the back corner where she’d just happened to plant some lettuces and leeks and other things she’d mentioned to him preferred shade though she wasn’t sure how she’d arrange such a cover.

 

It was remarkable, but then so was she.

 

As he watched from beneath one of those same trees, she pulled several small potatoes from a mound of earth and set them aside, then reached across to another row and retrieved a few long red carrots in turn. Supper items he guessed, and at the thought of a meal that was certain to be tasty with the aid of the flavorful herbs that flourished by the back door for her, his stomach growled.

 

Inghean looked up at the sound and smiled at him, the sight as always sending his heart aching in his heart. Well and truly gone, he was, not that she seemed to have guessed it. She dusted off her hands and gathered her spoils up in her apron before standing and coming over to join him in the shade, stooping for only a moment to pull a few leeks to add to her haul. Then she stepped closer to him and pointed upwards. “Oh look, the summer plums are ripening! Grab us a few, will you? We’ll have them as a treat for after supper.”

 

He followed her gaze up to a cluster of fruit just below his eye level, and he did as she bid, the ripe fruit twisting off easily in his hands. Then he couldn’t resist, biting into one of them with a cheeky grin that had her tossing back her head with laughter. “After supper, you lout!” she shook her head and then grinned back at him. “At least share it if you’re spoiling your supper.”

 

Asbjorn stepped closer and held out the plum for her to take, juice dripping down his fingers. She eyed it and then him, then leaned down and took a bite, her lips brushing his thumb and sending a shudder down his spine. Ingean leaned back up, chewed and swallowed, and then licked away the juice staining her lips while he stared. “You know, you have something,” she said softly, taking a half step closer, till the bundle of her apron was the only thing that separated her body from his, “just there…”

 

She trailed off, and he felt himself frozen in place as she rose up on her toes and place her lips this time against the corner of his mouth. He felt her tongue lightly lick away what must have been a spot of juice on his chin though he hadn’t noticed it. Part of him wanted to turn his head to catch her lips properly, but before he could, she slipped back down on her heels and stepped out of reach.

 

Inghean strode off toward the cottage, a light laugh trailing behind her. At the door she finally looked back at him over her shoulder. “Come on then. You can help me with supper if you’re so hungry. I can always use an extra pair of strong hands.”

 

Bless him, Asbjorn didn’t know for sure if she meant the innuendo or not, though the sly look on her face as she went inside said she likely did.

 

Either way, it’s not as if he wouldn’t follow. No matter where she led.


End file.
